By: Marie Carres
This article originally appeared in the Autumn 2019 issue of BEEKeeping Your First Three Years
As the northern states start preparations for Winter weather, here in south Florida, beekeeping is a year-round event. South Florida is in zone 10, a tropical climate, so it is possible in some years the low temperatures will not make it into the 30s.
One thing is that our queens keep laying eggs or if they do shut down, it is only for a few days. So, you will see eggs, larva and/or brood all the time. It is not uncommon for a hive to end up queenless. The stronger hives will still have drones present, so it is not impossible for a hive to raise a queen from an egg and make it back from her mating flight. But the question that remains is, are there enough adequate drones in the DCA to have a well mated queen?
Monitoring and treating for Varroa mites here are constant. It is easy for the mite counts to reach the threshold and treatments are recommended during this time period with the same precautions. Secondary pests such as small hive beetles and wax moths don’t die off in the cool weather, seeking refuge in an opportunistic hive or nuc. Especially, when it becomes light on stores.
Our hurricane season ends on November 30th, so with that is the end of the rainy season. During the Winter months we will have periods of dearth, with intermittent light showers. It can be weeks before the next rainfall. So, it becomes important to monitor the amount of stores that a hive has. Here in south Florida a hive can survive with four to six frames of stores. Usually, at this time I’m reluctant to remove any honey supers from the hives and I leave all frames in the deeps filled with nectar located next to the brood.
Robbing also becomes a factor. I reduce all the entrances down, especially on the weaker hives where entrances are reduced to where only one bee can enter or exit. You have to pay close attention to nucs because of their size they are more susceptible to these problems as well as running out of stores.
Under Florida State Laws and regulations, you are required to do your hive inspections once a month. I take my metal cart to the apiary. I place a large piece of cardboard across it and most of the time I take a 2nd large piece of cardboard. When I lift off the super, I place it on the cardboard, then I either cover it with the 2nd piece of cardboard or the lid, which ever seems to be handy. You can then focus on your inspection without worrying about setting off a robbing situation.
Our weather fluctuates with days in the 50s-60s and then a few days later we are in the 80s. Along with brief periods of nectar flows, ranging from a few days to a week, that can come from various types of plants and trees such as Brazilian Pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) which listed on the Category I Florida Exotic Pest Plant’s Council’s (FLEPPC) list of invasive plant species which has spread throughout the state. You will notice the nectar in the super because it will have a dayglow green/yellow color. It almost doesn’t look real. The honey that is extracted will have a peppery taste. During the rest of the cool month’s periods, the flow is helped with tree called Melaleuca (Melaleuca quinquenwevia) which is on the same list at Brazilian Pepper. It blooms when there is a cool snap or when there is rain Fall. The flavor of the honey is nice and pleasant.
We have a weed that blooms at this time called Florida pusley (Richardia scabra), Mexican clover or monkey snow which supplies nectar and pollen. It looks like snow spread across the lawns, Florida style. Honey bees will be covered with pollen as they move along from bloom to bloom. But if the rainfall becomes too far and between the plants will stop blooming.
Sometime in December you will see the flower spikes appear on the Mango trees (Mangifera Indica) and I noticed yesterday at the first of January honey bees checking out the Cocoplum (Chrysobalanus icaco) which is usually grown as a bush. It has shiny green leaves and produced a plum type fruit. There are buds starting to form. Panama Rose (Rondeletia leucophylla) which is originally from Mexico grows well here and blooms from November until Summer with star-shaped flowers. Spanish needles (Bidens alba) blooms all year-long. It is extremely prolific, and the bees just love it. But it is a considered a weed and homeowners remove it. It is also a nuisance because of the seed attachments that show up on your clothes and pets.
Part of my integrated pest management, I use screened bottom boards. In the Winter months I don’t close them off. My concrete blocks that I use for hive stands, sit on the flat side, which helps not having a totally open area under the hive. The bees don’t seem to mind. But I’m most appreciative is in the Summer months they work great with keeping the hive cool and ventilated when the temperatures are peaking in the 90s.
The most amazing thing that I find living here is that there can be a swarm at any time! Yes, it is true. I actually caught a swarm on 12/31/2017. I always keep a few swarm boxes up. You will see someone post on a local website that they just caught a swarm. Once past the Winter solstice on December 21st, you can notice that the changes in the hives due to the increased daylight.
Finally, Florida is a Winter home for many commercial beekeepers. They transport thousands of hives here for preparation to be shipped off to the almonds in California. Requirements are set by the growers for acceptance of a hive. Some growers request a 10 frame deep an eight-frame minimum of bees that are clustered. Others request 10-12 frame minimum of bees clustered on larger hive configurations. At the end of January is the beginning of transporting across the U.S. to the fields.
Honestly, I have never kept bees in the northern states. I’m sure it has some different and great challenges, because I can wait a few days for the warm weather, so I can look into a hive and make any adjustments that it needs. While the northern beekeepers are hoping that everything is ok in the hive as they wait for that first warm day.
As with anything that deals with weather, we all learn to watch the signs that give us an insightful indication of hive management, hopefully this article gives you a picture of what it is like being a beekeeper in the tropics during the Winter months.
